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Boleslaw Stanislaus Barlog (28 March 1906 – 17 March 1999) was a German stage, film, and opera director primarily known for his work in reviving the theatrical life of Berlin after World War II. From 1951 until 1972 he served as the Opera management of the Staatliche Schauspielbühnen Berlin, the municipal theatre company of West Berlin that at its height employed over 80 actors and operated three theatrical venues—Schiller Theater, Schiller Theater Werkstatt, and Schlosspark Theater.Varney, Denise (ed.) (2008). Theatre in the Berlin Republic: German Drama Since Reunification, pp. 68-71. Peter Lang. Der Spiegel (22 March 1999). "Gestorben: Boleslaw Barlog. Retrieved 9 September 2013 .Grange, William (2006). "Barlog, Boleslaw". Historical Dictionary of German Theater, p. 13. Scarecrow Press.
In 1950 Barlog received the Berliner Kunstpreis (Berlin Arts Prize),Akademie der Künste, Berlin. "Kunstpreis Berlin Jubiläumsstiftung". Retrieved 11 September 2013 . and the following year he became the Generalintendant (general director) of the West Berlin municipal theatre company, Staatliche Schauspielbühnen Berlin, whose venues included the Schlosspark Theater and the newly re-built Schiller Theater. During Barlog's 21-year tenure as its Generalintendant, the company mounted over 100 productions, including the German premieres of Beckett's Waiting for Godot and Conor Cruise O'Brien's Murderous Angels and the world premieres of Günter Grass's Die Plebejer proben den Aufstand and Edward Albee's The Zoo Story. However, according to theatre scholar Michael Patterson, the final decade of his leadership was marked by an increasingly authoritarian and conservative stance and unadventurous repertoire which led to declining audiences.Patterson, Michael (1981). Peter Stein: Germany's Leading Theatre Director, p. 39. Cambridge University Press. In a 1969 interview in Der Abend, Barlog attributed the audience decline at his theatres to the effect of television, hostile critics, and what he termed "spiritual smugness", remarking:
It will take care of itself in time. When people are worse off again, they will seek a spiritual experience, and their love for the church and the theatre will awake once more.Quoted in Patterson (1981) p. 39
In 1972 Barlog retired as Generalintendant and was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit by the Federal Republic of Germany.Kosch, Wilhelm et al. (eds) (1999). "Borlag, Boleslaw (Stanislaus)". Deutsches Literatur-Lexikon: Das 20 Jahrhundert, p. 2025. Walter De Gruyter. The Staatliche Schauspielbühnen's fortunes continued to decline, and it was eventually dissolved in 1993. After his retirement as a theatre manager, he continued working throughout the 1970s as a stage and opera director in Berlin and other German cities as well as in Vienna and Salzburg. His original 1969 production of Tosca for the Deutsche Oper Berlin was still in that company's repertoire in 2013, his 1972 production of Salome is still running at Vienna State Opera. Barlog's autobiography, Theater lebenslänglich, was published in 1981.Barlog, Boleslaw (1981). Theater lebenslänglich. Universitas.
Barlog died in Berlin in 1999 shortly before his 93rd birthday survived by his wife Herta ( née Schuster), whom he had married in 1939. Both are buried in Berlin's Waldfriedhof Zehlendorf in a Ehrengrab.City of Berlin. "Abfrage der Ehrengrabstätten" (List of Graves of Honour). Retrieved 11 September 2013 .
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